Joining forces to fight fraud
Thirty-seven organisations join forces to launch new strategy aiming to reduce fraud, a crime estimated to cost UK £38 billion every year.
It is the first time that government, industry, voluntary groups and law enforcement agencies have joined together on such a large scale to sign a joint commitment to tackle fraud.
All thirty-seven partners that have signed up to Fighting Fraud Together will contribute to and be accountable for its success.
Fighting Fraud Together and its accompanying action plan place strong emphasis on preventing fraud through greater fraud awareness and self protection, combined with stronger government and industry prevention systems and controls.
Examples of the new initiatives include:
- Preventing fraud: Industry and the public sector will develop their intelligence-sharing capabilities to prevent fraud attacks
- Increasing awareness and reporting: A new research tool will help all sectors provide more targeted prevention advice to the public, particularly vulnerable people, and develop a better understanding of small businesses’ vulnerability to fraud and the support they need. Action Fraud will expand its fraud report taking capacity to include all financially motivated online crime
- A more effective enforcement response: Greater intelligence capabilities of the National Fraud Intelligence Bureau will disrupt fraudsters’ activities and rapidly close down the channels through which they operate and launder money. Increasing the use of the civil system will bring more fraudsters to justice and there will be more redress for their victims.
Speaking at the Fighting Fraud Together launch event at Mansion House, Minister for Crime and Security James Brokenshire said: ‘I applaud the different organisations and industry groups that have joined together today to play their own part in Fighting Fraud Together. By sharing what we know, we will reduce fraud.
‘Fraud causes serious harm to the public, to businesses and the wider economy. For too long fraud has almost been seen as a victimless crime. It isn’t and too often the victims are some of the most vulnerable members of our community. That’s why this new strategy is important to better target, prosecute and prevent it.
‘The creation of a new Economic Crime Command as part of the National Crime Agency will also provide a more effective, better co-ordinated and intelligence-led response across all economic crime fighting agencies.’
